Code of Federal Regulations Title 38. Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief § 38.17.3101 Definitions

For the purposes of the HISA benefits program (§§ 17.3100 through 17.3130):

Access to essential lavatory and sanitary facilities means having normal use of the standard structural components of those facilities.

Access to the home means the ability of the beneficiary to enter and exit the home and to maneuver within the home to at least one bedroom and essential lavatory and sanitary facilities.

Beneficiary means a veteran or servicemember who is awarded or who is eligible to receive HISA benefits.

Essential lavatory and sanitary facilities means one bathroom equipped with a toilet and a shower or bath, one kitchen, and one laundry facility.

HISA benefits means a monetary payment by VA to be used for improvements and structural alterations to the home of a beneficiary in accordance with §§ 17.3100 through 17.3130.

Home means the primary place where the beneficiary resides or, in the case of a servicemember, where the beneficiary intends to reside after discharge from service.

Improvement or structural alteration means a modification to a home or to an existing feature or fixture of a home, including repairs to or replacement of previously improved or altered features or fixtures.

Undergoing medical discharge means that a servicemember has been found unfit for duty due to a medical condition by their Service's Physical Evaluation Board, and a date of medical discharge has been issued.

(Authority:  38 U.S.C. 501, 1717)